Liberty University alumna, spoken word artist and creator of The Hope Booth Gloria Umanah joined the Convocation stage Sept. 17, and Bob Goff, New York Times bestselling author of “Love Does” and “Everybody, Always,” spoke at Convocation Sept. 19.
Both Umanah and Goff called the Liberty community to greater surrender and to bold engagement with the world as bearers of Christ’s love.
On Wednesday, Umanah returned to her alma mater with a message that combined creativity, biblical depth and personal conviction. She opened with a powerful spoken word before sharing a vivid dream that had been on her heart just weeks earlier.
In her dream, Umanah saw a house full of young adults waiting to enter, each needing a secret password to get inside. There was also a slide that led them into what looked like a speakeasy. Umanah explained that her dream painted a picture of “radical individualization,” the belief that each person can define their own truth apart from God.
“You cannot reject God’s wisdom and expect his protection,” Umanah said, warning that the enemy’s lies often come disguised as safety or freedom.
Drawing on examples like Eve, Samson and the prodigal son, she explained that choosing to live outside of God’s wisdom always leads to destruction.
Umanah reminded students that when they make themselves their own gods, “the enemy doesn’t need to speak to you. He just needs to let you listen to yourself.”
Strongholds, she said, rarely look dangerous but the small lies eventually build walls of deception.
“Some truths are chains disguised as freedom,” Umanah said.
Of all the lessons that Umanah shared while addressing the student body, she said it is imperative for the students to be mindful of how spiritual warfare is real and they must be willing and ready to put on the full armor of God.
“I think coming to the recognition that there is a war, whether they know it, whether they like it, whether they choose to engage or participate in it, there is a war, and it comes in the form of deception,” Umanah said. “… Oftentimes the enemy can get us when we are not paying any attention at all.”
She said all Christians must remember to be watchful for the enemy’s tactics since it can be easy for believers to fall into Satan’s traps. Umanah said it is dangerous when people allow themselves to drift and settle in complacency since this mindset can cause many to stumble in their faith and become complacent to the enemy’s attacks.
She said relying on the Bible and trusting in the consistency of God’s character is the key to having peace and courage to move forward, especially when the path ahead looks unclear or inconsistent.
“Knowing that people may decide my decision was not the best or people may abandon me, they may leave me, that’s actually a part of the human experience. That’s part of life, but guess what? I do know my father will never leave me nor forsake me,” Umanah said. “… That’s not his character or his identity, so I can trust and rely in who he is, and I can trust that his voice will always be clear.”
Friday’s Convocation welcomed back Bob Goff, lawyer, speaker and author of “Love Does” and “Everybody, Always.” Goff brought energy and storytelling to the Vines Center packed with students, CFAW guests and parents in town for Family Weekend.
Addressing a world full of division, debate and suffering, Goff pointed to Romans 5:3-4: “We rejoice in our sufferings, knowing suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.”
Hope, he emphasized, is not just a personal comfort but something meant to be shared with others.
“God is hoping that we will take him seriously when he tells us how to do life,” Goff said.
He highlighted Matthew 25 as the blueprint for Christian faith in action: feeding the hungry, clothing the naked and visiting the sick and imprisoned.
“That’s it. Your path toward God is hungry people, thirsty people, sick people, strange people and naked people,” Goff said. “Go find somebody that’s hurting today.”
He challenged students to engage more deeply in relationships — asking questions like “What is it like to be you right now?” and “What do you want?” — echoing how Jesus often asked people what they desired before healing them.
Encouraging boldness, Goff urged the audience not to live cautiously in their faith.
“Don’t just put your toe in the water; do a cannonball,” Goff said.
He reminded guests that following Jesus requires wholehearted commitment and love that cannot be ignored.
Like Peter and John in Acts, Goff said believers should be known by the evidence of time spent with Jesus.
“People saw Peter and John and knew they were ordinary people, but they saw their courage and could see that the two men had been with Jesus,” Goff said. “I want people to see your courage and be clear about it — that they know you’ve been with Jesus in the way that you engage with people and the way you love people.”
Though their messages were different in style, both Umanah and Goff pointed students to the same truth: a life of surrender leads to a legacy of hope. Umanah called the Liberty community to reject the lies of radical individualization and the lies of the enemy, living in full dependence on God. Goff reminded them to take that surrendered faith into the world through courageous love and compassion.
Clardy is an intern for the Liberty Champion.